Shedding mechanism for looms.



PATBNTED FEB. 14, 1905.

F LAGBY.

SHEDDING- MECHANISM FOR LOOMS.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 12,1904.

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No. 782,570. I PATENTED FEB. 14, 1905.

- F. LAGEY.

, SHVEDDING MECHANISM FOR-LOOMS.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 12,1904.

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UNITED STATES Patented February 14, 1905.

PATENT OFFIC SHEDDING MECHANISM FOR LOOMS.

SI'TECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 782,570, datedFebruary 1.4, 1905.

Original application filed August 1,1904, Serial No. 218,990. Dividedand this application filed August 12, 190i. Serial No. 220,492.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, FRED LAOEY, a citizen of the United States, residingat Valleytield, in the county of Beauharnois, Province of Quebec,Dominion of Canada, have invented a certain new and useful Improvementin Shedding Mechanisms for Looms, of which the following is aspecification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings.

As is well understood by those who are skilled in the art, in theoperation of powerlooms the shedding action requires to be varied tosuit the different weights of the goods which it is desired to produce.For instance, a loom for Weaving a lawn, which is made from fine yarnsand is a very light cloth, should have the shed-forming mechanismthereof arranged to move the harness steadily and slowly I when changingfrom one shed to another in order to prevent breakage of warp-yarns andto give to the harness when the shed is fully open only suflicient dwellto allow of a clear passage for the shuttle. When weaving cloth of amedium quality which is a little heavier than lawns, using yarns alittle coarser than are used in the latter, it is necessary that theshed should be opened to its full extent a little earlier in the cycleof movements of the loom and should be" caused to dwell a little longerin such condition, affording a somewhat clearer shed for the shuttle, aclearer shed being required. when Weaving coarser yarns, inasmuch asthese last are somewhatcloser together in the reed than in the case oflawns. When Weaving sheeting, duck, or any other heavy fabric,the-warp-yarns must be crossed over the previous pick of Weft prior tothe beating up of the latter. In addition the shed must be fully openstill earlier than with medium goods, and the dwell of the open shedmust be longer. In weaving such goods it is requisite to cross thewarp-yarns back of each pick before the latter is struck up to thecloth-making line by the reed of the lay in order that the pick may notspring back as the lay and reed move away from the said line. Heavycloths cannot be woven in ordinary light looms Without the crossing ofthe warpyarns behind the pick that is being beaten up.

Although an ordinary loom provided .with properly timed and operatingharness mechanism can be made to weave reasonably-heavy cloth, a heavyloom with improperly timed and operating harness mechanism cannot weaveheavy cloth. In manyinstances, in addition, the size or depth of theshed must vary to suit the cloth which is to be produced. It heretoforehas been usual in mills'to run looms steadily on goods of the sameweight. At the present time it is desirable in order to meet the varyingrequirements of trade to be able from time to time to vary the productof a loom from cloth of one weight to cloth of a. different weight.

One general object of the invention is to enable 'the harness-operatingmechanism of a loom to be adjusted quickly and conveniently to adapt theloom to the production of cloths of different weights without replacingparts or otherwise reconstructing the said mechan- 1sm..

The present invention hasrelation more especially to harness-operatingmechanism of that class 'in which the harness-frames are connected bystraps or cording with rolls upon a shaft having operative connectionswith a rotating crank or its equivalent, the said shaft being oscillatedto occasion the working of the harness-frames.

The invention consists, essentially, in the combination, in a loom, withharness-operating mechanism normally adapted to operate in shedding thewarp-yarns in manner suited to the production of goods of a given weightand embracing a roll-shaft, crank or equivalent therefor, and operativeconnections joining said roll-shaft to said crank or its equivalent, ofautomatic devices which may be ren dered inoperative to affect orvarythe normal working of the said harness-operating mechanism when suchnormal working is desired, but which may be rendered operative when itis desired to adapt the loom for the production of goods of a givendiflerent weight to modify the normal action. of the harness so as tovary the length of dwell of the open shed, and, when desired, the sizeor depth of such shed also to suit the latter weight of goods. The

40 lower portion of the loom-frame.

o relation to the cam-shaft.

said devices preferably are adjustable to provide for the production ofa variety of weights I of goods.

The'invention is illustrated by the accom- 5 panying drawings, in whichFigure 1 shows portion of a loom in end elevation, partlybroken away,having applied thereto an embodiment of the invention. Fig. 2 is apartial rear elevation of the devices of 0 Fig. 1, the parts beingbroken away. Fig. 3

is a partial plan thereof, partly in section, on

the horizontal plane that is indicated by the dotted line 3 3 in Fig. 2.Fig. 4 shows in rear elevation the double or compound eccentric I5 ofFigs. 1, 2, and 3 detached. Fig. 5 shows the said double or compoundeccentric in side elevation. Fig. 6 shows in side elevation a crank ofadjustable throw which in some'instances I contemplate employing as anactuator for the carrier and a portion of the carrier which is engagedby the said crank. Fig. 7 shows in rear elevation the parts which arerepresented in Fig. 6.

Having reference to the drawings, portion 2 5 of one side frame of aloom is designated at 1, Fig. 1, and portion of the arch is shown at 2.

3 is the crank-shaft of the loom, and 4 is the cam-shaft thereof,thelatter rotating, as usual,

0 at one-half the rate of speed of the former.

5 5, Figs. 1 and 2, are harness-frames, 51 51, Fig. 1, being straps bymeans of which the said harness-frames are suspended from the top rolls52 52, carried by the upper rollshaft 53, which latter is mounted uponthe latter being connected pivotally with a crankpin 71, which iscarried by a rotating wheel 72. In this instance the wheel 72 is mountedupon and concentrically with cam-shaft 4, although it is free to turnindependently with The wheel 72 is provided with driving connections,presently to be described, by means of which it is rotated. In therotation of the wheel 72 reciprocating movement is communicated to the55 rack in consequence of the crank connection,

and through the engagement of the rack with the pinion 62 the lowerroll-shaft61 is oscillated, whereby the harness-frames are raised andlowered in alternation with each other as heretofore in the productionof sheds in the warp-yarns. For the purpose of enabling the depth ofshed to be varied when found necessary or desirable in practice, thethrowof the actuating-crank is made variable or ad-- justable bymounting the crank-pin 71 in a radial slot 73 in the wheel 7 2, whichenables the crank-pin to be set closer to or farther from the axis ofrotation of the wheel, the portion of the crank-pin which extendsthrough the said slot being screw-threaded and receiving upon itsthreaded extremity at one side of the wheel a nut 74, between which anda shoulder on'the crank-pin bearing against the opposite face of thewheel the wheel is clamped, thereby securing the crank-pin in itsposition of adjustment. Other and equivalent devices comprising a crankor its equivalent in operative connection with a roll-shaft for theharness are known and in some instances may be employed in lieu of thecrank and rack thus far described without involving departure from thespirit of my invention.

In the operation of the illustrated form of harness-operating mechanismas thus far described a certain amount of dwell of the open shed,suitable for light-weight goods, is caused to occur in the normalworking of the parts as the crank passes the opposite centers in itsrotation.

For the actuation of the wheel 72 itis placed, in the present instance,in operative connection with the cam-shaft 4. In Figs. 12 and 13 itconstitutes or is connected with the terminal element of gear-train thatis driven by the cam-shaft For the purposes of the invention the saidgear-train forms portion of a differential mechanism. The character andarrangement of the gear-train may vary without involving departure fromthe spirit of the invention. In the present instance it comprises abevel-gear 8, which is made fast upon the cam-shaft 4 by a clamping orbinding screw 81, an intermediate or carrier bevelgear 82, which ismounted as presently will be described, and the wheel 72 aforesaid,which latter is formed as a bevel-gear and is engaged by the saidintermediate or carrier bevel-gear 82, as shown. The intermediate orcarrier bevel-gear 82 is supported by a swinging carrier comprising aswivel 9 and an arm 91,'eX- tending therefrom. The said swivel consistsof a sleeve that is fitted upon the cam-shaft 4 between the bevel-gears8 and 72, so as to hold the latter at the requisite distance apart fromeach other, tliesaid sleeve having a radial socket 92, in which theinner extremity of the arm 91 is received and secured by a clamping orbinding screw 93. The intermediate or carrier bevel-gear 82 is journaledupon the stem of thesaid arm and is stepped upon the outer end of thesocketed portion of the swivel. It is held in proper engagement with thebevel-gears 8 and 72 by means of a collar 94, that is fitted upon thestem of the arm and secured in place thereon by means of a clamping orbinding screw 95. The bevel-gear 72 is confined between the swivel 9 anda collar 10 upon the corresponding extremity of the camshaft 4, the saidcollar being secured in place upon the cam-shaft by means of aclampingor binding screw 100.

In the working of the loom the normal action of the harness mechanism issecured by causing the carrier 9 91 to remain in a given position. Solong as the said carrier is held fixed in one position the crank fromwhich the lower roll-shaft is actuated will be rotated at the normalrate of speed, and the harnessframes will be caused to operate as usualin the production of goods of the weight which the harness mechanism isdesigned to cooperate in producing by its normal action. In conformitywith the present invention, for the purpose of modifying the action ofthe harness mechanism to suit the production of goods of a difierentweight, a differential movement is communicated to the crank. Thismovement is occasioned by communicating to the said carrier a completeoscillation or vibration for each shed formation. In the presentinstance the carrier is in operative connection with the crankshaftthrough the medium of an actuator that is applied to the latter. Thesaid actuator in Figs. 1 to 5 is constituted by an eccentric ofadjustable throw. It consists of a compound eccentric comprising theinner eccentric member 11, sleeved upon the crank-shaft and madefastthereto by means of a clamping or binding screw 111, and

the outer eccentric member 112 fitting around the eccentric body of themember 11 and secured in the desired position upon the said body byclamping or binding screws 113 113.

The described construction of the compound eccentric enables theperiphery of the outer member 112 to be adjusted either intoconcentricity with the crank-shaft, as shown by dotted lines in Fig. 5,or into position to secure any desired extent of throw within thecapacity of the device. Fig. 5 shows in full lines the double orcompound eccentric adj usted as required in order to secure the full ormaximum throw thereof, which is-also the adjustment thereof in Fig. 1.For engagement with the actuator the arm 91 of the swinging carrier isfurnished with a fork or yoke 96. embracing the actuator. When thecompound or double eccentric is set or adjusted, as indicated by thedotted lines of Fig. 4, so that the exterior of the same is concentric,it serves to hold the carrier in its stationary or fixed position, theresult of which is, as indicated above, to secure the rotation of thecrank at a uniform rate of speed. When the said double or compoundeccentric is set or adjusted so that its periphery is disposedeccentrically with relation to the crank-shaft, it imparts to thecarrier the swinging movement which is instrumental in producing thedifferential movement of rotation of the crank.

This differential movement by imposing upon the rotation of the crankalternateacceleration and retardation secures the different tially asfollows: As the carrier and the gear 82, mounted thereon, are caused bythe actuator to move in the direction from left to right in Fig. 1, aretardation of the rotation of the harness-actuating crank is occasionedor a retardation, dwell, and retardation, prolonging thedwell of theopen shed. .In Fig. l the eccentric-actuator, carrier, and gear on thecarrier are shown advanced through half of their stroke, the positionsbeing those corresponding with the middle point of the retardation ordwell. When the carrier begins its stroke from right to left, themovement of the carrier and the carrier-gear in the latter directionserves to accelerate the rotation, of theharness-actuating crank and theaction of the parts which are operated therefrom in completing theclosing of the old shed and the crossing of the warp-yarns in openingthe succeeding shed. By this acceleration, in addition, the new shed isfully opened at an earlier instant in the cycle of movements of the loomthan in the normal working of the harness-operating mechanism. Theacceleration of the rotation of the crank gradually dies out as thecarrier nears the end of its stroke from right to left until as thecarrier pauses at such end the crank rotates at normal speed, afterwhich as the carrier moves from left toright a retardation orretardation, dwell, and retardation of the crank occurs, operating todelay the closing of the shed, as before. If the actuator be adjusted tooccasion a different length of stroke of the carrier, a different lengthof dwell of the open shed may be secured.

Figs. 6 and 7 illustrate an actuator consisting of a crank of adjustablethrow which may be employed instead of the compound or adjustableeccentric 10. In Figs. 6 and 7 the crank-disk 115, fast upon thecrank-shaft 3, is formed in its outer face with a diametricallyextending undercut slot 116, receiving the head portion of the crank-pin117. Upon the stem of the said crank-pin is fitted the sleeve 118, andto the threaded outer portion of the said stem is applied theclamping-nut 119, taking against the outer end of the sleeve. By

The outer arm 95 of the carrier is slotted longitudinally, as at 96, andthe crank-pin and sleeve 118 thereof work within the said slot tocommunicate a vibratory movement to the carrier. The pinion, rack, andcrank and devices more immediately involving the invention comprisingthe differential gearing, carrier, and actuator may be located either atthe end of the loom outside the end or side of the latter inconveniently accessible position or at some convenient place between theends or sides of the loom-frame, as preferred by constructors or users.4

While I have been careful to explain fully the particular constructionwhich is shown in the drawings and the mode of operation thereof, I donot confine myself to the precise details shown and described. Thedevices for modifying the action of the harness-operating mechanism maybe modified more or less in construction, arrangement, and mode ofoperation.

My present invention is a division of that set forth and claimed in acompanion appli' cation filed by me August 1, 1904:, Serial No.

218,990, in which the generic principles that are embodied in thedevices herein shown and described are broadly claimed.

I claim as my invention 1. In a shedding mechanism for looms, thecombination with the harness, and the rotating crank, in operativeconnection with the harness and through which the latter is actuated, ofdevices by which the normal action of the said crank may be modified tovary the length of dwell of the open sheds.

2. In a shedding mechanism for looms, the combination with the harness,and the rotating crank, in operative connection with the harness andthrough which the latter is actuated, of diflerential-motion devices bywhich the normal action of said crank may be modified to vary the lengthof dwell of the open sheds.

3. In a shedding mechanism for looms, the combination with the harness,and the rotating crank, in operative connection with the harness andthrough which the latter is actuated,of mechanism to impart diiferentialmovement to the said crank, adjustable to vary the length of dwell ofthe open sheds.

4. In a shedding mechanism for looms, the combination with the harness,the crank, in operative connection with the harness and through whichthe latter is actuated, and means to rotate the said crank, of thedifferential- Inotion devices by which the rotary motion of the crank ismodified, provided with an actuator adjustable to render the saiddevices operative or inoperative.

5. In a shedding mechanism for looms, the combination with the harness,and the crank, in operative connection with the harness and throughwhich the latter is actuated, of opcrating means for the said crank,adjustable to vary the dwell of the open shed.

6. In a shedding mechanism for looms, the

combination with the harness, the crank, in

operative connection with the harness, and means to rotate the saidcrank, of means by which the normal action of the said crank may bemodified to change the length of dwell of the open shed, adjustable tosuit different lengths of dwell.

7. In a shedding mechanism for looms, the combination with the harness,and the rotating crank, in operative connection with the harness, ofmeans by which the rotary movement of the crank may be modified to varythe length of dwell of the open shed.

8. Ina shedding mechanism for looms, the combination with the harness,and the rotating crank, in operative connection with the harness, ofmeans to vary the length of the dwell of the open shed adapted to beplaced in and out of action as desired.

9. In a shedding mechanism for looms, the combination with the harness,and the crank, in operative connection with the harness, of thegear-train with which said crank is connected and by which it isrotated, the gearcarrier supporting a portion of the said train, andmeans by which the said gear-carrier is actuated.

10. In shedding mechanism for looms, the combination with thecrank-shaft, the harness, and the crank, in operative connection withthe harness, of the gear-train by which the crank is rotated, thegear-carrier supporting a portion of the said train, and the actuatorfor said gear-carrier, actuated by the crankshaft.

11. In shedding mechanism for looms, the combination with thecrank-shaft, the harness, and the crank, in operative connection withthe harness, of the gear-train by which the crank is rotated, thegear-carrier supporting a portion of the train, and the actuator forsaid gear-carrier, actuated by the crank-shaft, and adjustable to varythe length of dwell of the open shed.

12. In a shedding mechanism for looms, the combination with the harness,and the crank, in operative connection with the harness and throughwhich the latter is actuated, of operating means for the said crank,adjustable to vary the length of dwell of the open shed, and means tovary the size or depth of the shed.

13. In a shedding mechanism for looms, the combination with the harness,and the rotating crank, in operative connection with the harness andthrough which the latter is actuated, of devices by which the normalaction of the said crank-is modified to vary the length of dwell of theopen shed, and means to adjust the size or depth of the shed.

14:. In a shedding mechanism for looms, the combination with theharness, and the rotating crank, in operative connection with theharness and through which the latter is actuated, and means to vary thesize or depth of the shed, of differential-motion devices by which thenormal action of said crank is modifieddto vary the length of dwell ofthe open she v 15. In a shedding mechanism for looms, the combinationwith the harness, and the rotating crank, in operative connection withthe harness, of means to vary the size or depth of the shed, and meansby which the rotary movement of the crank may be modified to vary thelength of dwell of the open shed.

16. In a shedding mechanism for looms, the

combination with the harness, and the crank,

FRED LAOEY.

Witnesses:

CHAS. F. RANDALL, R; WALLACE.

